"Legendary Africa mercenary 'Mad Mike' Hoare, who inspired movie Wild Geese, dies aged 100"

SCMP:

In 1981, Hoare led a group of mercenaries that planned a coup to return to power the pro-Western founding president James Mancham to power in the Seychelles archipelago.

The group of more than 40 entered the country disguised as a beer-drinking tourist party called “The Ancient Order of Froth-Blowers”.

However, their plan came undone when one of his men got into the wrong queue at customs and an airport inspector found a weapon in the luggage and a gunfight broke out.

The men then hijacked an Air India flight and forced the pilot to take them to Durban in South Africa to escape.

His Wikipedia entry.